Reproduced from the Jefferson County Delinquency Prevention Council 2007 Annual Report with permission.
The Teen Court Difference
Here is what one teen court participant had to say about how the program affected him:
“Teen Court helped me learn my lesson. It wasn’t the most fun, but I enjoyed helping other people and knowing that I wasn’t the only one who’s ever been in trouble.”
Now and Then
The Jefferson County Teen Court program began in 1998, holding a mere 13 trials its first year. Each year, this number has grown and to date, Teen Court has held 520 youth trials. As Teen Court involvement has developed, so have the site locations. In 2007, the Teen Court site offerings expanded to meet the needs of all of our = county-wide participants, now holding court proceedings in Whitewater, Jefferson and in 2008, will also hold court proceedings in Watertown.
Value Beyond The Dollar
The value of Teen Court is measured by more that just a dollar savings. While it is important to acknowledge that a 2005 cost-benefit analysis concluded that the teen court program resulted in a net present value to Jefferson County of at least $75,400 annually, it is also important to note the qualitative value. When obtaining feedback from families on the impact Teen Court had on their lives, one mother stated, “My son seemed like a different kid after Teen Court, it defiantly taught him respect.” A father commented, “Teen Court can be time consuming for active youth, but it introduced my son to how the legal system works and showed him the consequences for what may seem like a minor infraction. Overall it was a positive experience and I would choose to do Teen Court again if I had to do it. “ Not only does the Teen Court experience impact the youth involved, but the entire family system, as well as the greater community.
Success Through Numbers
During 2007, thirty-nine youth were sentenced through teen court, 35 of them completed their sentencing successfully, yielding a 89.7% success rate. To date, only one participant has reoffended since their successful sentence completion. The Jefferson County Teen Court has a longitudinal recidivism rate of only 5.4% overall and 2.6% within a year of previous program completion.
A New Approach
As the result of grant funding provided by the Department of Corrections, the Teen Court program was given the opportunity to expand its services to repeat offenders and felony level offenders (when applicable and allowed by court policy) in 2007. To date, none of the repeat/felony level offenders served have reoffended. Additionally, this funding allowed Teen Court to enhance the school-based referral process, adding Watertown’s Riverside Middle School as one of our referral sources.
